A disabled high school teacher was simply sitting at her desk when she was approached by a student, who launched a brutal and allegedly unprompted attack. As fists flew, students recorded the beating, but that’s not even the worst of it, according to police.
Larrianna Jackson, an 18-year-old high school student, was arrested following an incident at Covington High School in Covington, Louisiana. According to WWL-TV, Jackson was having a conversation with a 64-year-old, disabled schoolteacher inside a classroom at the high school when things took a terrifying turn as the student began pummeling the educator and other students looked on and recorded.
In the startling footage captured by other students in the classroom, a female, later identified as Larrianna Jackson, is seen standing near a teacher, having a conversation with the educator, who’s seated in a chair at the desk. After talking for a bit, Jackson is seen suddenly striking the teacher without any apparent provocation. Be forewarned, the footage may be difficult for some viewers to watch.
As Larrianna Jackson launched her assault, the unsuspecting teacher is knocked out of her chair. Even after the educator is knocked to the ground, Jackson doesn’t quit. Instead, she’s seen continuing to repeatedly pummel the woman, beating her with her fists in the allegedly unprompted attack.
“[The teacher] was just talking to the student about a grade, and the child was just explaining their side, and then all of a sudden [the teacher] was attacked [by the student],” St. Tammany Parish School District Superintendent Peter Jabbia explained, according to The Blaze. Sadly, that’s not even the worst of it.
Rather than being appalled by the behavior displayed and taking the footage to the authorities, students decided to post the video to social media, leading police to question the true motive. After being posted to Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, the cell phone video footage of the violent attack on the teacher quickly went viral, drawing the attention of the Covington Police Department.
Although the police said they were unsure of the motive for the attack, they admitted that they believe the assault may have been part of a TikTok challenge. Known as the “Smack a Teacher” challenge, the goal of the dangerous social media challenge is to assault a teacher while capturing the attack on video. Authorities have warned that such a challenge could result in hefty criminal consequences, cautioning schools and parents after the challenge began trending online.
According to a spokesperson for the St. Tammany Parish School Board, the teacher was left with injuries that required medical attention and was taken to the hospital after the attack. She was eventually released from the hospital and recovering at home. “She is very bruised and hurt, she’s in a lot of pain, and I just feel for her,” Superintendent Jabbia said.
The school board vowed that “appropriate disciplinary action” was taken against the student following the incident, and the police took appropriate action as well, arresting 18-year-old Larrianna Jackson on a felony charge of battery on a school teacher. She was booked into the St. Tammany Parish Jail.
In addition to Jackson, other students may face charges as well once police identify the students who recorded the video and determine whether or not they knew the assault was going to occur before it unfolded. According to reports, Jackson, who wore a smug grin in her mugshot, was uncooperative with the investigation. Why are we not surprised?
Parents, talk to your kids. If they think for one minute that such a “challenge” sounds like a good idea, it’s time for discipline, an intervention, and maybe even some tough love. As Anna Fusco, a teachers’ union president in Broward County, Florida, told USA Today while speaking of such challenges: “This is a flat-out, calculated plan to commit a crime on a person, and that’s not okay.”
